{"title":"Swimming With the Bicheno “Coffee Club”: The Textured World of Wild Swimming","authors":"S. Gould, F. McLachlan, B. McDonald","doi":"10.1177/0193723520928594","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Wild swimming is currently experiencing a surge in popularity as people avowedly attempt to reconnect with the natural world. Previous research has positioned wild swimming as a solitary pursuit whereby individuals retreat from society to connect with or overcome nature and better themselves. This article draws on an ethnographic examination of a wild swimming group in Australia and reveals that while being in nature and personal fulfillment are key motivations for these wild swimmers, it is the social interactions that facilitate a deep engagement with their local “bluespace.” We argue that rather than swimming away from the world, by “wayfaring” together these swimmers become connected to their environment, and each other, simultaneously. Such findings indicate potential social, health, and environmental benefits of collective wild swimming.","PeriodicalId":47636,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sport & Social Issues","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.5000,"publicationDate":"2020-06-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"9","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Sport & Social Issues","FirstCategoryId":"95","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1177/0193723520928594","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"HOSPITALITY, LEISURE, SPORT & TOURISM","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 9
Abstract
Wild swimming is currently experiencing a surge in popularity as people avowedly attempt to reconnect with the natural world. Previous research has positioned wild swimming as a solitary pursuit whereby individuals retreat from society to connect with or overcome nature and better themselves. This article draws on an ethnographic examination of a wild swimming group in Australia and reveals that while being in nature and personal fulfillment are key motivations for these wild swimmers, it is the social interactions that facilitate a deep engagement with their local “bluespace.” We argue that rather than swimming away from the world, by “wayfaring” together these swimmers become connected to their environment, and each other, simultaneously. Such findings indicate potential social, health, and environmental benefits of collective wild swimming.
期刊介绍:
Journal of Sport & Social Issues is an indispensable resource that brings together the latest research, discussion, and analysis on contemporary sport issues such as race, media, gender, economics, drugs, recruiting, injuries, and youth sports. Using an international, interdisciplinary perspective, Journal of Sport & Social Issues examines today"s most pressing and far-reaching questions about sport, including: World Cup soccer, gay experience and sport, social issues in sport management, youth sports, sports subcultures. Always provocative, Journal of Sports and Social Issues presents a lively public discussion of the impact of sport on social issues from many perspectives.